


Stone Cold

by velotoraptor



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Bisexual Lance (Voltron), Forgive me but I had the idea, Galra Keith (Voltron), Hurt Keith (Voltron), Hurt Lance (Voltron), Keith (Voltron) is Bad at Feelings, Keith gets kidnapped, Keith/Lance (Voltron) Angst, Lance (Voltron) is a Mess, Langst, M/M, Missions Gone Wrong, Pining Keith (Voltron), Pining Lance (Voltron), Zarkon is a dick, klangst, well sort of
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-07-31
Updated: 2017-12-13
Packaged: 2018-12-09 06:32:27
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 4,715
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11663556
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/velotoraptor/pseuds/velotoraptor
Summary: Lance should've let Keith lead.He should've been behind the other boy, like he usually was, except this time Keith had fallen behind due to an injury on his leg.Lance turned around when they got to the airlock his lion was waiting at- only to come face to face with an image he never wanted to see.He stepped forward, to reach for Keith as the large Galra grabbed his arm- but Keith's boot was suddenly at his chest and he was pushed out into space, where his Lion immediately picked him up.Lance should've let Keith lead.





	1. I'm Gonna Do What I Have to Do-Lance

**Author's Note:**

> I saw an animatic and it made me cry so I wanted to write a fic.

_"Paladins, retreat back to the blue and yellow lions!"_ Allura's voice rang through their helmets, and it didn't take long for Keith and Lance to agree. They'd taken two of the lions on opposite ends of the ship. In yellow was Hunk, Pidge, and Shiro- blue had Lance and Keith. They only took two of the lions, in order to make sure if something went wrong, the Galra wouldn't get ahold of the robots. In hindsight, it hadn't been the best idea to split up.

Keith had just taken the blade out of a Galra's stomach, and he spun to face Lance- and then a laser hit him right in the calf. He let out a strangled cry of pain, but he soldiered on as Lance shot the Galra over his shoulder. "Keith!" he said, rushing closer to the red paladin, eyes scanning the injury. It didn't look too bad, but he knew that once the adrenaline wore off, Keith would be in a lot of pain. "Come on!" he said, turning on his heel to take off down the hallway they had entered from. 

The mission was supposed to be simple. They'd gotten word of Matt Holt's appearance on the ship, and it was supposed to be a simple search and extract, but it had been a trap. They got there and were immediately swarmed with Galran soldiers, which ended in a thirty minute long battle between paladin and Galra. The paladins were winning, but they were only human- they were all running out of stamina. It was only a matter of time before they ended up losing, so Allura called for a retreat, to which they all eagerly obliged.

_Thump. Thump. Thump._

The sound of the heavy footsteps was all that rang throughout the hallway, along with their heavy breathing through the receivers. Lance let out a whoop as they rounded the corner, the airlock doors in view just a few yards away. "Booyah!" he cheered, pumping his fists in the air as they ran. He could hear Keith's feet behind him, albeit a little awkwardly since the red paladin had an injury. "Beat you there, Keith!" he grinned, glancing over his shoulder at the boy.

"You're on." he said with a smirk. 

Lance laughed, picking up his speed. He typed in the code- ingrained into his brain by Pidge before they got onto the ship- to the door and turned around with a triumphant smile. "I wi-" he cut himself off at the sight of a Galra, twice the size of a normal Galra, and about quadruple the size of the paladins reaching out for Keith, who was only a mere foot away. Lance, after a split second, snapped into action and reached out to grab Keith- except he got a boot to the chest, and he was being shoved out into the cold emptiness that was space.

"Go!" Was the last thing he heard from Keith.

It took less than a second for blue to swoop in and scoop him up, and Lance was left laying there in the cockpit, unsure what to do now. He couldn't breathe- Keith had just saved his life, and the expense of what may be his own life. It was rare for them to get people back after they were taken. Shiro was an exception- they still couldn't find Matt or Mr. Holt, and it had been years since they disappeared. After a moment, he heard a scream of pain- Keith's- and suddenly the comm from his headset went dead.

" _Keith?! Lance?!"_ It was Shiro's voice, and it suddenly snapped Lance back into the present."

"Shiro! Keith got taken!" Lance choked out, getting up from his position to climb into the pilots seat. "I've gotta go back and get him- who knows what they're going to do to him." he punched in a few controls, turning his lion around to head back to the ship.

" _No, Lance. We've gotta get back to the castle and come up with a plan to get him out safely."_  Shiro's calm voice rang through his ears, and it made Lance's blood boil. How was he so calm?! Keith could be getting hurt- scratch that, from the scream he heard, Keith  _was_ getting hurt, and he wasn't even worried?  _"Lance."_  When Lance didn't say anything, Shiro's voice was there, like it always was whenever Lance would get like this. Firm, but soft enough to let Lance know things would be okay. Or, so he hoped, that is.

"Fine." Lance growled, swinging his lion back around again, picking up the speed to make it back to the castle. In the long run, this was all his fault, and he knew it was. Keith had been protecting him. That stupid, ignorant, asshat! If it weren't for him sacrificing himself every mission, this wouldn't be an issue. Lance wanted to hate him, he wanted to forget Keith even existed, but he knew that wouldn't ever happen. Ever since the Garrison, Lance had the biggest crush on Keith- which he masked with insults and attempts to push the boy away. He wanted to hate him, God did he wanted to hate him, but moments like these... Keith just sacrificed himself so Lance could get out.

When he made it back to the castle and stepped out of his lion, he was met with the solemn faces of the others. "We're going to find him." was the only thing that left Lance's mouth, his eyes full of emotion. He meant it, too- he wasn't going to let the Galra hurt Keith more than they already had. 

"We know." Hunk said, looking close to tears. The poor guy, whenever Lance was sad, Hunk would end up being the one to cry- he was crazy empathetic, and Lance loved that about his best friend. "We'll find him, Lance."

"Yeah! We'll kick that Galra ass when we do!" Pidge chimed in, a smile on her face.

"Pidge! Language." Shiro commented, but he had a small smile on his lips as he stepped forward, towards Lance. "You should go rest before we really start planning this- you all should."

"But-"

"No. It would do Keith no good to have all of us exhausted when we finally attack the empire. Sleep." he said firmly, looking at each Paladin in the eye, his leader voice and fatherly voice coming out all at once. Lance rolled his eyes at the familiarity.

"Fine." he murmured, walking out of the room the lions were kept, making his way to his own room.

He never got there.

Lance would deny it blatantly if asked, but Shiro found Lance curled up on Keith's bed, jacket- which they all left here when they were in their paladin armour- clutched to his chest and dry tears on his face.


	2. These Prison Walls- Keith

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Keith's POV  
> more angst  
> tw for violence

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gonna try to update every three days?? I hope??

It had been a split second decision on Keith's part, but after he felt the Galra grab him, he knew he was done for. Lance, though- Lance he could save. He was moving before he could fully comprehend it, and his foot was connecting with the other paladin's chest, shoving him out into space. He glimpsed Blue scooping him up before the airlock shut, leaving Keith alone with this huge beast.

He was struggling in it's arms, kicking at whatever it could, but it didn't seem to care he was even there. It wasn't even reacting to his movements, and it just further frustrated him. Well, until he managed to elbow the Galra as hard as he could in ribs, making the beast cry out in pain, dropping Keith in the process. He immediately scrambled to get up, but a hand was suddenly wrapped around his neck, and he was shoved against a wall. 

"You Galra half-breed." The Galra sneered, his face getting close to Keith, who struggled to breath. He clawed at the hand holding his neck, but the Galra didn't budge. He started to see dark spots in his vision, and suddenly, he felt a sharp pain in his wound the moment he was let go. He screamed, not even trying to hold it back, the pain making his head reel and his heart race. He wasn't sure how long he screamed, the Galra continued pressing on his wound in the most painful way, but he was suddenly thrown against the wall, air knocking out of his lungs.

The last thing he saw before he passed out was the Galra's smug face, and Keith wanted to kill him.

-

When he woke up, he was laying on the floor of what seemed to be a cell, the dark purple illuminating the metal walls of his prison. He slowly sat up, wincing at the pain all over his body, specifically his leg. There were cuffs around his wrists, and it made his shoulders deflate. With a quick glance around, Keith noticed that there was a thin blanket sprawled in the corner, but nothing else- great. He really was in a prison. He closed his eyes, trying to think rationally, trying to think of some way out of this. He always had a plan- except this time, he had nothing.

He wanted to cry, in all honesty. He already missed the others, and it was something he hated sometimes. He'd become so attached to them that he missed them almost immediately after parting ways. He'd gone so long without a proper family, but then he'd met the Paladins and, well, they were a family. A little dysfunctional at times, but a family nonetheless. He hated that he'd gotten so close to them, but now that he had, he didn't regret a single moment of it.

Because he loved them all, he'd protected Lance, and that made his heart feel warm and a small smile form on his lips, despite the situation he was in. At least Lance was okay. At first, he'd found the boy incredibly annoying, and obnoxious. Slowly, but surely, he'd begun to grow close with the blue paladin. Shiro would often comment on how close the two seemed now, but Keith would always shrug it off as being no big deal. In reality, though, it was a huge deal.

Whenever Keith was around Lance, his heart would race and he wouldn't be able to stop blushing. He'd never had the feelings before, and for awhile, he had thought it was because he was sick. Until he talked to Shiro about it, and the other paladin had laughed so hard Keith thought he was going to explode.

_"Shiro, I think I'm allergic to Lance, or something." Keith had whined, collapsing onto the floor of the training deck as the simulation ended. He and Shiro had been training yet again, one of their favorite pass-times on the ship. "Every time I get near him, I get all flushed and my heart races and I can't think straight." he explained, looking over at the Black paladin._

_Shiro looked over at him, blinked once, and then promptly started laughing like he had just told the funniest joke in the universe. "Keith!" he managed to gasp out, clutching his stomach now as he laughed. "That's not allergies. That's- it's a crush!"_

_Keith had sat up quicker than light, and he was watching Shiro with a terrified look on his face. "On Lance?!" he practically shouted, throwing his hands in the air. "So what if he's gorgeous? And funny? He's annoying. And full of himself." he huffed, crossing his arms over his chest._

_"Gorgeous, huh?" Shiro smirked._

_Keith had to pretend Shiro didn't exist for a good four hours._

The memory was still fresh in his mind, and just thinking about it made him feel a bit of hope. The paladins would come for him- he was sure of it. They all loved him- well, that's what he hoped, at least. He'd only recently discovered he was Galra, and Allura had taken it hard. She treated him like shit, and he wasn't really upset about it- her whole family had been destroyed by Galra. Her reaction was only normal, he assumed.

"Half-breed." A voice said, and Keith's head snapped up, thoughts of the others dissipating almost immediately at the sight of someone all too familiar to him, Sendak. He was also followed by a few other soldiers, blasters at their sides, so Keith definitely had no chance of getting out. "Aren't you pretty, all messed up like this?" he teased, before stepping forward to grab Keith's face, nails digging into his skin as he pulled him to his feet. "We've got some tests to run, and you're the perfect subject." he grinned.

Keith felt his blood run cold, but he had no choice but to follow. "You're not going to get away with this." he said, voice a low growl as he glared at Sendak's back, wishing he could reach out and kill him right now. "The other paladins will come after me."

"Ah, so you say." Sendak replied, glancing back at him, uninterested. "Or perhaps they'll be glad to have gotten rid of a half-breed like yourself. You're just like us,  _Keith._ A monster." he hummed, turning forward again. "If I were them, I wouldn't want you around, either." He led them all into a room, a chair in the middle surrounded by multiple machines. "Sit." he ordered.

"No."

"Fine." Sendak smiled, and motioned for his guards. They grabbed Keith's arms, forcing him into the chair despite the red paladin's dismay. "We've seen you in battle," Sendak began as the guards strapped Keith in, a sick, twisted smile making it's way onto his lips. "So we want to make you one of us." 

"I will  _never_ be one of you." Keith growled, eyes narrowing as he tugged at his restraints. 

"Oh, but Keith, you already are." Sendak sighed, shaking his head. When the restraints were set in place, he stepped forward and attached two things to each of Keith's temples, making Keith struggle even further. "If you struggle, it will only hurt worse, Keith." he warned, and that's when the burning started.

Keith counted each second, the pain getting worse and worse, the feeling of his entire body being on fire. He was twisting- as much as the restraints would allow- in the chair, screams of pain leaving his lips. At one point, the screams died off, and turned into silent ones, voice too hoarse to continue to scream.

He got to eighty seven before the pain became too much, and it all went black.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Things get... intense.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So sorry about the loooooong break guys. I'm back!

Sendak kept Keith strapped to that chair for God knows how long, and the pain had been so constant that the red paladin was beginning to become numb to it. The sharp burning that flowed through his body slowly turned into a numbness, his body trying to protect itself from further damage. 

That was when Sendak finally decided that was enough.

He pulled the metal from his temples, and Keith took in a deep, gasping breath in attempts to recover from what he had just been put through. His ears were ringing, and he could feel the tears flowing no matter how hard he tried to get them to stop. However, he still met Sendak’s eye, not willing to back down and give him what he wanted.

“Still trying to hold on, Keith?” Sendak asked, a smirk on his annoyingly smug face. “I’ve tried time and time again to let you know that you don’t have any power here. Just give in, and let us do what we want to.”

“Never.” Keith spat out, voice hoarse from the screams he knew left his throat. “I won’t let you turn me into a weapon.”

“Perhaps I should let Haggar have a go at you, hm? Let her see what she can find in that pretty little mind of yours,” He leaned down so his face was only inches from Keith’s, his little fangs glinting in the light of the room. 

“Fuck you.” Keith growled out, tilting his head back, feeling another wave of emotions flood over him. “I’d rather die than be one of you.”

“So you say. Have it your way, Haggar will be in shortly.” Sendak chuckled, before turning on his heel, walking out of the room to leave Keith all by himself, body still buzzing from the torture he’d been put through. Well- not completely alone, there were two sentries standing at the door, probably for safety if Keith miraculously was able to get out of his bindings. Unlikely.

Keith took a deep breath, trying to calm his nerves, and his heart. He was going to get out of this- the others would save him, or he’d find a way out for himself. He wasn’t going to allow Sendak and the rest of the Galra army to turn him into one of them. He couldn’t do it, not to all the people he loved. 

He wasn’t sure how long he sat there, but his headache only continued to get worse as the minutes rolled on by. He was exhausted, his eyes were threatening to droop and his body was on it’s way to shutting down, then Haggar walked in. He watched her warily, wishing he had his knife, or his bayard. The woman looked… scary. Her skin was more gray than it was purple, and her eyes were a neon yellow that made Keith’s skin crawl- or maybe that was just after effects of the torture Sendak had placed him under.

“So, Red Paladin,” she greeted him, taking her precious time in strolling around the chair he was strapped to, her yellow eyes taking in the sight. “I’m giving you one last chance. Willingly join our armies, or be subjected to pain you’ve never felt before.” she said firmly, her voice rough and full of malice.

“I said… never.” He managed to bite out, glaring at the bitch in front of him- and if looks could kill, he’d have been out of there hours ago. He could handle the pain, he thought. If it were any of the other paladins, they’d suffer and probably give in, but Keith could handle it.

“Very well.” Was all Haggar said, before her fingertips moved to trail down Keith’s jaw, before brushing up to his temple. “I’m going to see what’s in here, and you’re going to join us.” When she said that, a sharp pain hit Keith’s temple hard, and he let out a broken sound that he had wished he’d been able to keep in, because Haggar’s smile looked sickening. 

“Sleep well, Paladin.” Haggar said, before turning and leaving the room, leaving a very confused Keith in her wake. Was that all she was going to do? Hurt his head? He could take it, if that was it. He’d been expecting something more, something bad but maybe, just maybe, he’d be okay. As they unhooked him from the chair and brought him back to the cell, his mind was racing.

\--  
He’d been sleeping for a few hours when he’d heard it. The loud, tell tale sign of blasters being shot in the distance. He’d sat up quickly, heart hopeful as he shuffled to the door of his cell. Just as he got there, he’d spotted that familiar shade of blue rushing towards him. 

Lance.

“Lance!” he’d practically cried, and the moment the door had opened, he fell into the other Paladin’s arms. He didn’t care how embarrassing the moment was, he’d just play it off and say he didn’t remember it once he fell out of the pod like Lance had all those months ago. 

“Keith, hey! Come on, we’ve gotta go,” Lance said, giving Keith a squeeze, before he wrapped an arm around his shoulders to help him out of the cell. “I’ve got you, buddy.” he said softly, voice softer than anything he’d ever heard from Lance before. If it weren’t such a serious moment, Keith would’ve kissed him.

It was when they turned the corner that he’d realized they were screwed. 

A whole group of druids was standing there, and Lance shoved Keith behind the wall they’d just turned from and began firing. Keith was powerless, he couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe. He just watched. And then Lance let out the worst sound he’d ever heard in his life and collapsed to the ground. 

Keith rushed to his side, not caring about the stupid druids or the fact they were still on the Galra ship. He only cared about Lance right now. Lance, with his stupid smile, or his stupid laugh. Lance with his stupid selfless nature, and his happy demeanor. Lance, who was currently bleeding out right in front of him and he could do nothing to stop it. “No, no, no,” he whispered, grabbing Lance’s face.

“Shh,” Lance said, voice shaking as he tried to keep his eyes open. “Keith, it’s okay. I- I’ll be okay.” It was a lie, the blood was beginning to spill from his mouth, and the pool around them was steadily growing. Lance’s hand reached up to push some of Keith’s hair behind his ear, and then his eyes fluttered shut and his hand fell to his side.

Lance was dead.  
\--  
He woke up with a gasp, turning onto his side on the cold floor, throwing up right there. It took him a second, looking around, to process what had just happened. It was a dream. That had all been a dream. He let out a sob of relief, throwing his arm over his face as he tried to ground himself. 

He was still in the prison, he hadn’t moved from when he’d been brought back. Lance was still alive and okay. He didn’t even realize how hard he’d been crying. 

The door to his cell slid open, and Haggar was there, an evil look on her face and a smile on her lips. “That, my dear Red Paladin,” she said, taking a few steps forward. “Is only the beginning, unless, of course, you decide you want to join us.”

That was it. She wasn’t going to hurt him physically, her plan and goal was to hurt him emotionally and mentally- something Keith was vulnerable in. He wasn’t good with connections, or people, or feelings, and she was feeding off of that. She knew how weak he was.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance can't take it anymore.

“Lance, you can’t keep hiding yourself away in your room.” Allura said as the others entered into the dining room for dinner. It had been six days and three hours since Keith had been taken- not that Lance was counting or anything. Nope, he didn’t care. Not at all. 

“I’m not hiding.” The boy in question argued, crossing his arms over his chest as he sat down in his chair, glaring down at the table top because he knew he was hiding. He’d locked himself in his room, not even attempting to come out for the first two days until Coran had to hack into the castle system with Pidge and unlock the door so they could drag him out and make him eat. 

“You’re definitely hiding.” Hunk argued, earning a glare from the blue paladin because his best friend was supposed to back him up, not agree with the enemy. “Sorry, dude,” he said, putting his hands up innocently. “But you’re hiding and I’m worried about you.”

“God, I’m not hiding!” Lance shouted, slamming a hand down onto the table, making everyone jump in surprise as the sound resounded off the walls. It was rare for Lance to ever lose his cool, especially on them because he treated all of them like family. 

No one said a word, they all just watched Lance.

Then, he broke down.

The first sob made Allura jump, because she’d never heard anything that heartbreaking before. She immediately stood up from her chair, her eyes soft as she made her way to Lance. She laid a hand on his shoulder, trying to soothe and comfort him. “Lance,” she began gently, “We all miss Keith.” 

“Yeah, I still remember when he first taught me hand-to-hand combat.” Hunk chimed in, nodding. “He taught me everything I know about it- which, isn’t much, but yeah.” 

Lance wiped his eyes, trying to calm himself down, but he was a mess. “Guys, I- I think I love him.” he managed to choke out, before he let his head fall into his hands, his body shaking as he continued to sob his heart out. It was a huge confession. He expected everyone to be surprised, or to laugh at how absurd it was- but all of them already knew how he felt. 

“We know, Lance.” Shiro said, coming up to place a hand on Lance’s other shoulder. “We’re going to get him back. I know for certain that he loves you too. He… he wouldn’t have ever tried to get you out of there if he didn’t.” 

Hearing that Keith might actually love him too didn't help. In fact, that made all of this hurt worse because that meant there was a chance they could be together. Lance clutched at his chest, his head falling forward as his body was overtaken by sobs once again. “I can’t lose him.” he whispered, voice shaking.

“You won’t.” Shiro promised, voice firm because there was no way in hell he was going to let Keith die. “We’re going to get him back, okay?”

“Guys!” Pidge suddenly shouted, looking up from her laptop, eyes wide. “I found him!” she practically screamed, jumping up from her seat to rush to the others. “Look! I managed to hack the Galra system, and,” she typed something, making a few alien phrases pop out of the giant mess of letters and code. “After translating all of this? It says Red Paladin! And it has which ship he’s on!” 

Lance rushed forward, grabbing the laptop and reading the screen. “Pidge, you amazingly smart gremlin!” he cried out, throwing the laptop into Shiro’s arms, pulling Pidge into a super tight hug. 

“Ew, personal space, Lance,” she said, but there was no malice in her voice. She was happy that Lance was happy. “Only issue is… he’s on the main ship. As in.. the one Haggar and Zarkon are on.” Pidge said slowly.

“Oh... “ Hunk said, voice barely above a whisper. “So… we basically have to break into what is bound to be the most heavily guarded ship?”

“We have to do it. We have to!” Lance said, voice desperate as he looked at the others. “Keith is probably- he’s probably being tortured. We can’t just sit here and let them hurt him!”

“Lance, we won’t,” Shiro said, shaking his head. “But we need a plan and that plan can’t be suicidally running into a heavily guarded ship. Okay? We’ll come up with a plan, maybe head out there in a few days.” he whispered.

Lance shook his head, pushing past Shiro. “He might not have a few days, Shiro.” he said darkly, glancing back at the others over his shoulder. “He might be being tortured right now, and you all don’t even care!”

“Of course we care!” Allura said, voice angry. “Don’t you dare assume that we don’t. We just can’t risk losing anyone else, Lance! Losing Keith was hard, imagine living without Keith and Pidge. Or Keith and Hunk!”

“I- fine. Whatever.” Lance said, turning and walking out of the dining room. His feet were moving without his mind telling them to. He ended up in Blue’s hangar before he could stop himself. She let him in, and he sat in her control center and cried. He’d cried so much since Keith left, but it never felt like enough. He was upset. He was angry. At Keith. At the Galra. At himself. God.

“Come on, Blue.” He whispered, sitting up straight. He wiped the tears away from his eyes, starting Blue up. He could feel the lion telling him it was a bad idea, but he ignored her. “We’re going to save Keith, with or without the others.” he said, and Blue took off with a loud roar. He left the castle behind, and once he heard the worried voices of the other Paladin’s, he shut his comms off and leaned back. He put the coordinates in for Haggar’s ship, taking a deep breath. “I’m coming, Keith. I promise.”


End file.
